Concentration process



Patented Feb. 6,1940

UNITED STATES PATENT? OFFICE CONCENTRATION PROCESS Arthur J. Weinig,Golden, 0010., assignor to Potash Company of America, Denver, 0010., acorporation 01 Colorado No Drawing. Application February 19, 1935,Serial No. 7,219. Renewed Februaryll, 1939 2 Claims.

This invention relates to the' concentration of ores and its primaryobject is to provide an efficacious flotation treatment for separatingvalues from soluble ores in a processrequiring the inter-: mixtures ofthe are with water or other liquid.

An essentiality of the flotation process is that ore in a finely dividedcondition be suspended in a liquid, usually water, and subjected toagitation and/or aeration in the presence of an agent which hasa'preferential afllnity for one or more of the metalliferousconstituen'tsof the ore, over.

the base'r matter, thereby inducing an elevation of such constituent orconstituents to the surface of the liquid body where it collects in afroth, which is subsequently removed by overflow.

The flotation process above described has here- I tofore been applied tosubstantially non-soluble.

ores, as the values sought to berecovered in the froth were held insuspension in the liquid, with which the ore is intermixed, in a solidcondition.

found to be particularly amenable to such treatment and sulphate orsulphonate derivatives of lauric acid or lauryl alcohol are theflotation reagents of the process. .Speciflc compositions which haveproved particularly eflicacious as the reagent of the treatment aresodium lauryl sulphate (or sulphonate), a sodium salt of the halfsulphuric ester of primary lauryl alcohol, or an alkali salt of asulphonated alcohol.

All the foregoing compositions serve to produce frothing, collection andpromotion, as well as selectiohin the flotation treatment of ores of theabove-described character.

The pulp is subjected to selective flotation of the potassium chlorideconstituents by the use of the reagent, which may be introduced into thesame, prior to the flotation treatment, or it may be introduced directlyinto the flotation treatmerit and mixed by the agitative action of the(halite), excellent results can be obtained by a flotation treatment of-a of the mineraL' While the invention scribed may be applied in thetreatmentof various soluble ores, it is more particularly adapted forthe separation in a saturated brine solution,

saturated brine solution of potassium chloride constituents from sodium4 chloride constituents of 'sylvinite ore by'subjecting the saidconstituents to the actionof a reagent having a preferential aflinityfor one of said constituents, and it is in this connection that thesteps involved in the process accordingto the invention will now bedescribed.

as hereinafter to be de- The ore with its soluble matter, in a flnelydi- :vided' condition, is intermixed with" a saturated solution of thesame ore, or more particularly, of its valuable constituents andsubjected to the action of a reagent which in the presence of agitationand/or aeration selectively carries to u the. surface as a froth to besubsequently removed by overflow, one of thevaluable. constituents,which has remained in a solid state owing to the saturated condition ofthe liquid.

Ores containing halite and sylv ite'have been process.

As an example of the application of the process,

potassium chloride and sodium chloride constituents of an ore,when-introduced into a saturated solution of potassium chloride, andsubjected to the action of sodium lauryl sulphate in a froth flotationtreatment, will be cleanly separated with potassium chloride valuescarried to the surface and collected in a froth, where they are readilyremoved by overflow. The present application is intended to cover thespecific features hereinbefore discussed and the broad concept of theflotation treatment and the use of equivalent reagent materials whichhave not been made the subjects matter of claims in the presentapplication have been described and claimed in my co-pending applicationSerial No. 38,316, filed August 28, 1935,. for Flotation process fortreating sylvinite ores and products obtained thereby. I

. Changes and modifications may be availed of within the spirit andscope of the invention as defined in the hereunto appended claims.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A-process of concentrating ores containing potassium chloride andsodium chloride which comprises subjecting the-ore pulp containingpotassium chloride and sodium chloride to a froth flotation treatment inthe presence ofsodium lauryl sulphate.

2. A process of concentrating ores containing potassium chloride andsodium chloride which 'Ecmprises subjecting the ore pulp containing po-'tassium chloride and sodium chloride to a froth flotation treatment inthe presence of a sodium salt of the half sulphuric ester ofprimarylauryl alcohol.

ARTHUR J. WEINIG.

